RIP: Malcolm McLaren Dead at 64

At time of writing, reports are suggesting legendary Sex Pistols impresario Malcolm McLaren has died of cancer in New York. He was 64.

At time of writing, reports are suggesting legendary Sex Pistols impresario Malcolm McLaren has died of cancer in New York. He was 64.

“He had been suffering from cancer for some time, but recently had been full of health, which then rapidly deteroriated," his spokesman Les Molloy told The Independent. "He died in New York this morning. We are expecting his body to be brought back to London and buried in Highgate Cemetery."

Expect a thousand different people to write a thousand different pieces about him, his influence and his personality over the next few days. To call him a polarising figure is a vast understatement; to some McLaren embodied the cynical, fashion-driven side of punk while to others he was was hero for comprehensively fucking the system at a time when very few stepped out of line. The funny thing is, it always seemed like he was fuelled by antagonism as much as positivity - just like the Pistols - and whether you liked or disliked his work there's simply no denying the latter part of the 20th century would have been VERY different without him. And probably a lot crapper.

His influence - again, both positive and negative - will continue to be felt in the worlds of fashion and music for years to come.